Renault earns slump in 2012 despite Volvo sale

PARIS (AP) -- French car maker Renault saw its profits crumble last year despite a hefty one-off gain on the sale of its shares in Swedish truck maker AB Volvo.

Renault says its net profit slipped to €1.77 billion ($2.39 billion) in 2012, down 15 percent from a year earlier. The 2012 earnings included a nearly €1 billion gain from the sale in December of its remaining stake in AB Volvo.

Renault's car making operations lost money last year as a steep drop in vehicle sales more than offset gains from cost reductions.

The carmaker said its goals for 2013 were to return to profitability in its automotive division and lift vehicle sales, which plummeted nearly 20 percent last year to 551,334.